Rating: 
Summary: Good Instincts, Spotty Presentation
Review:
Updated to correct my error--original words left to make an important point: that even very experienced CIA people are unaware of some of the very bad things that the author obliquely was referring to but did not document appropriately. New material below in brackets.
I found this book very much on target with its principal thesis, to wit, that the United States is too quick to take pre-emptory and often covert or illicit action against short-term threats, and that we pay a very heavy price over the long run for doing things like reinforcing despotic regimes, overturning anti-American regimes, and so on.
However--and I am one of those who first learned to admire the author when he was an authority, in the 1970's, on the causes of revolution--I found the presentation spotty, with errors of fact and perception in those areas where I have a solid background, specifically the U.S. Marine Corps on Okinawa, and the clandestine service of the Central Intelligence Agency. Neither of those two organizations is as evil or disorganized as the author seems to believe, and frankly, I found his bibliography with respect to both domains to be mediocre. [Since reading this book I have been absorbed in a book not yet available in the US, Gold Warriors, by the Seagraves, and have been stunned by the crimes they document--to wit, the theft by the US, secretly and without the taxpayer finding out, of all the gold and other treasures looted by the Nazis and the Japanese during WWII, subsequently using this "black money" to fund global political corruption on a grand scale--all on the part of the U.S. Government, with specific assistance from the CIA, Treasury, and others. Their book comes with two CD-ROMS containing 60,000 documents in support. I am persuaded, and this book, among others I had forgotten on CIA money laundering and occasional drug running, causes me to credit Chalmers Johnson with more accuracy on his accusations than I in my naivete first appreciated. His documentation still leaves much to be desired, but I perceive that he is more on the mark than off.] This is a helpful book. If it were the only one it would be important in its own right, but in the light of books such as Daniel Ellsberg's "SECRETS: A Memoire of Vietnam and the Pentagon Papers," or Derek Leebaert's much more profoundly researched and documented "The Fifty-Year Wound: The True Price of America's Cold War Victory," it falls from the front rank to the second shelf. Among the critical points where the author is original and heed must be paid, is in his evalution of competing forms of economic management, and his very strong condemnation of the manner in which the US tries to impose a specific form of capitalism on the Asian economies, to their great detriment. His book reinforces concerns others have articulated with respect to administrative secrecy enabling terrible policies to be enacted in the name of the people; to the military-industrial complex and its negative roles in arming and inciting to repression selected military around the world; to US guilt in human rights violations, to include the provision of encouragement for repression in both Indonesia and South Korea; and with respect to the value of North Korea to those in the US who want to fabricate a case for an anti-missile defense that most informed people agree is absurd in its concepts and extortionary in its pricing. I am quite glad I read this book, quite glad to be reminded of the brilliant long-term contributions of the author to the field of Asian studies and the causes of revolution, and certain that those who specialize in studies the pathology of power--especially of imperial power such as is now enjoyed by the United States, will find much food for thought in this book.
Rating: 
Summary: Thought Provoking
Review: rightening thought provoking. This book gave me a new perspective on our world. I have always been a staunch support of "Globalization". This book has made me re-think my position. If you are in the mood to read a book that will bring you down through it raw honesty read it!
Rating:
Summary: Amazing!
Review: This is a greay book. You will hear the untold part of many stories you heard and still hear in the news. This book will change the way you listen to the news. I wish I can make every body read this book.
Rating:
Summary: What you don't know about what the USA has done to the world
Review: Eye opener. The chapter on Okinawa is enough to make a person wonder why Japan not only tolerates but PAYS FOR several dozen American military bases there, complete with golf courses, swimming pools, and Japanese [prostitutes] (and you thought 'comfort women' were a past shame of WWII.) Good
Rating: 
Summary: Over the top
Review: Simply put, this book is full of contradictions. It criticizes the U.S for about every single policy it has adopted with dealing with any nation east of western Europe. For example, Chalmers Johnson criticizes the U.S use of sanctions against Iraq while praising the U.N sanctions against Libya. Never mind that both sanctions are U.S led sanctions against nefarious rulers who use terrorism and torture as their weapon of choice.
In short, Johnson makes it seem as if all despotic dictators had their nations best interest at heart while the U.S is an evil power trying to rule the world. No country has alterior motives except the U.S. My suggestion is that if you are looking for an objective look into U.S policy in east Asia, then try to find another source.
Rating:
Summary: Wow
Review: Written a year or so before the 9-11 attacks, this book lays out clearly why and how it is that we can expect terrorism to get worse, if our foreign policy remains the same. Well, it did stay the same. And terrorism did get worse, as the 9-11 tragedy shows. That said, this was not simply a prophecy book. It was a well-written, biting critique of the American Empire, which (regardless of where you stand) should be read and understood by everyone. This book is particularly relevent now, after the attacks, since the US seems ...bent on continuing with business as usual. That is, the post-attack stategem appears to be increased security, larger military, and harsher dealings with "non-cooperative" states: Bush's adiplomatic "you're with us or against us" policy. Prepare to be roused from complacent and dogmatic slumber. A must read!
Rating:
Summary: The Chickens Come Home to Roost
Review: Of all the myriad books I ahve read from my college days to the present, only a few books stand out including various books I have read and reviewed from Common Courage and South End Press, "Red Hunting in the Promised Land" various books on the Kennedy assassination and texts on American foreign policy. Yet, "Blowback" spells it all out. While I'm not looking for simplistic explanations for American foreign policy actions, "Blowback" presents a guiding principle which places the sometimes mysterious and baffling conduct of the American ruling class into perspective. Interestingly, "Blowback" provides a rationale concerning the effects of American foreign policy, and the actions of the CIA, on the domestic atmosphere in America. My only criticism of the work is that I believe he presented the information but that he neede to then draw the proper conclusions. He presented the information and then let the reader draw conclusions. I would like to have known what the author thought. Nonetheless, "Blowback" is well worth reading and using. When your friends discuss American foreign policy and try to make sense out of it, just bring out your copy of "Blowback." It will provide the answers.
Rating:
Summary: Actually 4.5 Stars, But a Little Closer to 5
Review: I was led to this book by an article Johnson had written. It's about time that someone start to tell the story about America's not-so-clean deeds throughout the world. Johnson concentrates on Asia, but then he's an Asian specialist. I would have liked to see more on Johnson's views on globalization and its relation to American foreign policy. He's one of a very few scholars who advocate the continued existence of a manufacturing base in the U.S. This idea may seem outdated, but it's not. Superpowers can't expect to have their wares (not to mention army berets) manufactured in countries who happen to be potential rivals (and potential nuclear strike targets, according to President Bush), and still be considered superpowers. A post-09/11 follow-up to this book would be greatly appreciated by readers.
Rating:
Summary: Don't believe everything you read
Review: This book was written to appeal to anti-American sentiment. It is full of baseless accusations and insinuations. Coming after 9/11, it's timing couldn't be worse. The author has a most definite anti-American bias which shines through after just the first few pages, and continues with his conspiracy theories and other assorted nonsense. If you're an anti-American terrorist or drug smuggler type, this book is for you. If you have an ounce of grey matter in your head, this book is not for you.
Rating:
Summary: Why They Hate Us
Review: Since 9/11, I have asked many friends and acquaintances why they thought it happened. Only one saw any connection between that terrible tragedy and our policies and practices throughout the world. Of course, it goes without saying that NOTHING justifies terrorism or killing innocent people. But what happened on 9/11 is more complex than your average hate-crime. Saying that "those people" hate us does little to understand what happened or why. Chalmers Johnson has spent a lifetime of viewing the USA through the eyes of the world, mostly the Far East. He presents a convincing case for those who believe that we have become a rogue super power, doing what we wish when, where and how we wish. He concentrates on the Far East. I do not believe that I am the only American who is surprised by his revelation that the US military has a terrible record of sexual abuse of Japanese women. His narrative details the numerous ways that the USA imposes its will on local inhabitants from Japan to Italy. While we, in America, wonder how any people could hate us - the charitable, smiling Americans dispensing candy bars and freedom with equal fervor - Johnson tells of another view. An America that insists that all who commit crimes on its people are tried in the USA but who refuse to let its own people be tried in any foreign courts. An America that has vetoed most international human rights credos, and that insists on backing repressive governments throughout the world. This is a book that should be read by all of those who REALLY ant to know why, and are not afraid of the answer.
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